Definitions

"facility" means premises owned, leased or otherwise occupied by an operator and used to provide continuing care;

"minister" includes a person to whom the minister has delegated some or all of the minister's powers under this Act;

"operator" means a person who enters into an agreement under section 4 with the minister for the provision of continuing care.

Application

2This Act does not apply to health care services unless they are prescribed under section 3.

Continuing care

3The Lieutenant Governor in Council may prescribe to be continuing care one or more health care services to persons with a frailty or with an acute or chronic illness or disability that do not require admission to a hospital as defined in section 1 of the Hospital Act.

Agreements

4(1) The minister may enter into a written agreement under this Act with an operator under which the government will make payments on behalf of clients, determined by the minister, who receive continuing care from the operator.

(2) On an agreement being entered into under subsection (1), the operator must comply with this Act and any applicable standards, guidelines or directives issued by the minister.

(3) An agreement under subsection (1) may specify terms and conditions that the operator must comply with in addition to standards, guidelines or directives issued under subsection (4).

(4) The minister may issue standards, guidelines or directives and may issue different ones for different classes of operators or for different classes of health care services, and the minister may exempt an operator from complying with a provision of any of them.

(5) If, in the opinion of the minister, an operator fails or refuses to comply with a provision of an applicable standard, guideline or directive, a term or condition of the agreement entered into under subsection (1) or a provision of this Act, the minister may, in writing, notify the operator that the agreement is terminated

(a) in accordance with the provisions in the agreement for notification of termination by the minister, or

(b) on a date established by the minister, if

(i) the agreement does not provide for notification of termination by the minister in the circumstances, or

(ii) the minister determines that termination earlier than permitted by the agreement is necessary to protect the health or safety of a client.

Clients

5(1) The minister may determine the persons who will receive continuing care for which a payment will be made under this Act.

(2) The minister may issue guidelines respecting eligibility for payment under subsection (1), but the minister's determination is final and binding.

(3) The minister, an officer of the minister's ministry or an employee of a health authority may require a person to

(a) provide, by means of a signed statement or otherwise, information respecting the person or the members of the person's family thought necessary by the minister, officer or employee for the proper administration of this Act, and

(b) consent to the release to the minister, officer or employee of personal information respecting the person for the purposes of verifying the information provided under paragraph (a).

(4) The minister may establish forms for the purposes of subsection (3).

Fees and charges to clients

6(1) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may prescribe the rate that an operator may charge a client receiving continuing care for which the government is making a payment.

(2) An operator must not charge a client an amount exceeding the rate prescribed under subsection (1) except in accordance with directives issued by the minister or as permitted in an agreement entered into under section 4 (1).

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1), the Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations as follows:

(a) respecting the manner in which rates are to be calculated and payments by clients are to be made;

(b) prescribing different rates for different classes of clients, including classes based on the date on which clients were approved to receive, or did receive, continuing care;

(c) in respect of that portion of the cost of receiving continuing care that a client must pay,

(i) exempting clients or classes of clients from making payments, and

(ii) authorizing the minister to waive all or part of a payment that a client or class of client would otherwise have to pay.

Inspectors

7(1) The minister may appoint inspectors for the purposes of this Act.

(2) In respect of an agreement entered into under section 4 (1) and on the request of an inspector, an operator must permit the inspector

(a) to inspect all records related to the provision of continuing care of current or former clients of the operator,

(b) to inspect all financial records related to the provision of continuing care, and

(c) if applicable, to inspect a facility and have access to any client in the facility.

(3) A person must not obstruct an inspector in the performance of the inspector's duties.

Administrator

8(1) By notice of appointment served on the operator, the minister may appoint an administrator to deliver continuing care covered by an agreement under section 4 in place of the operator if the minister has reasonable grounds to believe that the health or safety of persons receiving continuing care from the operator is at risk because of

(a) an act or omission of the operator or of an employee or agent of the operator, or

(b) the condition of one or more facilities owned, leased or otherwise occupied by the operator.

(2) An administrator appointed under subsection (1) may exercise for the period specified in the notice all powers necessary to deliver the continuing care described in the agreement with the operator under section 4, including

(a) operation of any facility or the provision of any service covered by the agreement,

(b) employment and remuneration of staff,

(c) requiring clients to pay fees or charges directly to the administrator, and

(d) by notice to the Minister of Finance of the appointment, requiring the government to make all payments directly to the administrator for services rendered to the clients.

(3) Promptly, at the end of the period of the administrator's appointment, the administrator must render an accounting of the operation to the minister, and any excess of revenue over expenditure must, after deduction of the administrator's fees, be paid to the operator.

(4) The minister must determine the fees to be paid to the administrator, but, if there is insufficient money to pay those fees under subsection (3), the minister must pay the difference.

(5) This section does not apply to a private home occupied by an operator as the operator's personal residence in which continuing care is provided to not more than 2 clients.

Appeal of appointment of administrator

9(1) Not more than 7 days after receiving a notice of appointment of an administrator, an operator may appeal the appointment by sending to the minister a written notice that the operator appeals it.

(2) The notice must be received by the minister before the expiry of the 7 day period.

(3) Not more than 14 days after receiving notice of the appeal, the minister must appoint an appeal board to hear the appeal.

(4) The appeal board consists of not more than 3 persons one of whom must be appointed chair by the minister.

(5) In accordance with directives issued by Treasury Board, the minister must set the remuneration to be received by the chair and the members for each day they are engaged in an appeal.

(6) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may establish the procedure to be followed on an appeal.

(7) By application to the Supreme Court made within 21 days after a decision of an appeal board is received by the appellant or the minister, the appellant or the minister may appeal the decision of the appeal board on a question of law or jurisdiction.

(8) An appeal from a decision of the Supreme Court lies to the Court of Appeal with leave of a justice of the Court of Appeal.

Officials not liable

10The minister, an inspector and their agents, officers, employees, representatives and persons acting on their behalf are not liable in their personal or official capacities for loss or damage suffered by a person because of anything done or omitted to be done in good faith in the exercise or purported exercise of powers given by this Act.

Confidential information

11A person who, in the course of carrying out the person's duties under this Act, obtains information, files or records that are submitted in accordance with a request or obligation under this Act, must not disclose the information, files or records to any person other than for the purposes of carrying out the duties under this Act or if required by law.

Offence

(3) A person who knowingly provides information that is false or misleading with respect to a material fact contained in a signed statement under section 5 (3) commits an offence.

(4) A person who produces or relies upon a signed statement given by another person under section 5 (3) while knowing the signed statement to be false or misleading with respect to a material fact contained in that signed statement commits an offence.